Sewing-machine needle.



No. 703,944. Patented July I, I902.

F. W. MERRICK.

SEWING MACHINE NEEDLE.

(Application filed June 24, 1901.; v (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet l;

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UNITED STATES ATENT OFFICE.

SEWING-MACHIN E NEEDLE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 703,941, dated July 1, 1902.

Application filed'June 24,1901. Serial No. 65,737. (No model.)

To all whmn itmay conicern:

Be it known that I, FRANK W. MERRIOK, a citizen of the United States, residing at Boston, in the county of Suffolk, State of Massachusetts, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Sewing-Machine Needles, of which the following is a'specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

A well-known type of chain-stitch waxthread sewing-machine in extensive use at the present time employs a hooked or open eyed straight needle which is causedto re ciprocate in right lines in forming the stitches; In practice heretofore cast-offs have been employed in machines of this type in connection with the needles thereof, a cast-off being necessary for the purpose of closing the eye' of the needle containing the freshly-drawn loop by covering the barb or hook thereof, so asto enable the old loop to slip over said freshlydrawn loop and off the end of the needle, as required in enchaining the loops to form the stitches.

My invention has reference to they needles of machines of the said type; and the object of the invention is in general to produce a needle of a construction which will enable a cast-01f to be dispensed with and will, moreover, insure that the point of theneedle after the completion of the descent ofthe latter shall remain within the loop just drawn thereby and that theneedle in rising shall ascend within the said loop.

I have illustrated an embodiment of the invention in the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings, Figure 1 shows in elevation part of a sewing-machine, such as aforesaid, having applied thereto a needle embodying the invention, only so much of the machine beingrepresented as is required for the purpose of making clear the nature of the invention. Fig. 2 shows in elevation, looking from thefront'of the lse'wing-Inachinet'. 6., from the right in Fig. 1-the upper portion of a needle constructed in conformity with iny invention. Fig. 3 shows the same in section on the plane indicated by the horizontal dotted line 3 3,Fig. 2. Fig. a shows the upper portion of the needle in rear elevation- 'i. e., viewed from the left in Fig. 1. Fig. 5

shows the same in section on the plane indicated by the horizontal dotted line 5 5, Fig. 4. Fig. 6 shows the upper portion of the needle in side elevation-21 e1, looking from the front in Fig. 1with a loop of thread engaged there by and drawn from the stock being stitched, as in the descent of the needle. Fig. 7 is a View similar: toFig. 6, but with theneedle shifted slightly to the right as preliminary to the ascent thereof. Figs. 8 and 9am somewhat similar views representing, respectively, the needle during its ascent and during its descent with a second loop in process of being drawn.

- Having reference to the drawings, 1, Fig. 1, is portion of a Work-support.

2 is material in process of being stitched, said material being represented in Fig. 1 as resting upon the work-support 1.

3 is a presser-foot bearing on the upper surface of said material.

a is the presser-bar.

5 is an awl.

6 is an awl-bar.

7 is a thread-carrier.

8 is the needle.

9 is the needle-bar.

Except with respect to the needle all of the foregoing parts are or 'may be as usual, or

they may be constructed, arranged, and 0perated in any desired manner.

71 is the open eye of the needle, and 72 the hook or barb thereof. I

The loop heldin the open eye of the straight hooked needle of a chain-stitch-sewing machine ordinarily-has its position determined by the direction in which the said open eye faces. The width of the said loop extends at right angles to the said direction. Ordinarily in such machine'the needle is set with its open eye and barbfacing the direction from which the work is fed. This has the advantage that a loop occupying the said eye has its width at right angles tothe line of stitches, with its bight or closed end embracing the rear side of the needle, while the sides of the fully-drawn loop draw naturally past opposite sides of the needle, so that the point of the needle has no opportunity to miss such loop as the needle ascends for the purpose of receiving a fresh loop from the thread-carrier. It, however, has the drawback that it necessitates the use of a cast-off for enabling the fully-drawn loop to be discharged over a fresh loop in process of being drawn and means for operating the cast-off. This adds to the number of parts and increases the delicacy of the mechanism and the tendency to wear and breakage, whileit operates to limit somewhat the working speed.

In conformity with my invention I so construct the needle as to enable the same to be set with the eye and hook or barb thereof facing away from the normal position of the bight or closed end of a fully-drawn loop about to be shed from the needle. In this position of the needle the said eye and barb are shielded from the said bight or closed end of the loop, so that after the needle has risen to take a subsequent loop and as it descends in drawing the latter the said fully-drawn loop is permitted to slip upward along the needle and discharge therefrom without becoming caught by the hook or barb.

In the drawings (see Figs. 1 and 6 to 9 more especially) the needle 8 has the eye and barb thereof faced substantially at right angles to the line of stitching and away from the observer in Fig. 1. The needle may be constructed to occupy other positions in practice, if desired, without departing from the principle of the invention. It will be apparent that with the needle thus set the ascent of the needle toward the position in which the thread is laid around the same by the threadcarrier will raise the eye and its hook or barb above the bight or closed end of the fullydrawn loop, (see Fig. 8,) while in the subsequent descent of the needle in drawing the fresh loop (see Fig. 9) the hook or barb will be shielded from the said loop and will clear the same in consequence of being turned away from the normal position of the bight or closed end of the loop. Hence the fullydrawn loop will be free to slip off the needlepoint. However, with a needle having the open eye and barb thereof facing away from the normal position of the bight or closed end of. a fully-drawn loop encircling the needle a loop occupying the eye of the needle and under strain, as in being drawn by the needle, would be so disposed relatively to the needle-point that the needle-point would miss or tend to miss the said loop in the ascent of the needle unless provision were made for holding the loop spread in position to be passed through by the ascendingneedle-point. Should the ascending needle-point miss the loop, the result would be that a stitch would be left incomplete and unsecured through the failure of such loop to become enchained with the next succeeding loop. With the eye of the needle disposed as in the drawings the loop would naturally assume a position with its width parallel with the line of feed. If allowed to assume this position, the needle-point would frequently miss the loop in the ascent of the needle. Hence I make provision for extending the loop transversely across the line of the needle. Thus I provide the needle with. a detaining flange 73, by means of which the thread after having been laid by the thread-carrier around the needle and into the eye of the latter isheld wrapped more or less completely about the needle in opposition to the natural tendency of the loop to assume a position conformable to the position of the open eye of the needle. The fullydrawn loop thereby is held so as to encircle the needle.

The essential characteristic of the flange 73 will be apparent if it is observed that in the absence of any special means of detaining the thread in a position more or less completely wrapped about the needle there would be a tendency for both sides of the fullydrawn loop to occupy positions at the opposite sides of the open eye of the needle, which in the case of the illustrated embodiment of the invention would place the loop parallel with the line of stitching. It will be obvious that with the loop thus disposed the needlepoint would be almost certain to fail to enter the loop. Should both sides of the loop be found on the same side of the ascending needle-point,it would follow that as soon as the 'needle lifted far enough to release the loop from the strain that is-incident to drawing thev same down the loop would spring out from under the hook or barb. The results would be the release of the loop from the neodle, the missing of the loop by the needle in its ascent, and a failure to enchain the loop with the following one.

ICO

The detaining-flange 7 3 is located between the eye and the point of the needle, preferably extending to the actual point of the needle. This flange detains one side of the loop in a position relative to the point of the neodle other than the one natural from the direction in which the eye 71 faces. In the drawings the said flange is located at the side of the needle which is opposite to that on which the open eye faces. Consequently the outer side of the loop thereby is prevented from slipping around to the inner side of the needle. Thereby the disadvantages aforesaid are avoided. In the illustrated embodiment of the invention the said flange constitutes one wall of a spiral groove 74, which last extends from the inner portion of the open eye 71 half way around the needle to the point of the latter, the said groove being formed on an increasing spiral, so that at the point of the needle it is substantially parallel with the axis of the needle.

During the descent of the needle the thread a coming from the thread-carrier draws naturally under the detaining-flange 73. (See Fig. 6.) The flange retains the thread in place during the entire descent of the needle and also when the needle after having completed such descent begins to rise. Fig. 6 shows how the loop is held wrapped around the needle-point, with both sides thereof to one side of such point, so that the loop cannot escape, and Fig. 7 represents the relations of the loop and needle as the latter begins to ascend.

76 is a straight groove which is formed in the needle 0n the side of the latter opposite the beginning of the spiral groove 74 to receive the portion of thread extendingfrom' the last completed stitch to the eye of the needle.

I claim as my invention- 1. A straight hooked sewing-machine needle, having a thread deflecting and detaining FRANK W. MERRICK.

Witnesses:

CHAS. F. RANDALL, WILLIAM A. COPELAND. 

